


The Moments We Two Can Share

by GinnyK



Series: Two Lost Souls on the Highway of Life [8]
Category: NCIS
Genre: F/M, Hanging Out, Team as Family, post ep for Ephemera
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-02-26
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:35:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22837141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GinnyK/pseuds/GinnyK
Summary: Post Ep for Ephemera.  The latest case has had an effect on most of the team, Gibbs included.
Relationships: Jethro Gibbs/Jacqueline "Jack" Sloane
Series: Two Lost Souls on the Highway of Life [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1351900
Comments: 8
Kudos: 101





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Title obviously comes from the song Precious and Few, as featured in the episode. I have fond memories of the song as a very young child. My Aunt and Uncle owned a restaurant and I remembered the song playing on the juke box.

“Okay, glad things worked out. Guess I’ll talk to you later.” Jack ended the call with a sigh and tossed her phone on her desk.

“Gibbs on his way back?” Ellie asked from where she was sitting on Jack’s couch.

“Yeah, he and Ducky just finished at the museum. Said they’ll be back soon.”

“Did he ask if you’ll still be around?”

“No, he didn’t. But most likely I’ll still be here,” Jack said with a small shrug of her shoulders.

The two were quiet for a little while, both lost in their own thoughts about the case. Ellie started to say something a few times but never quite got her thoughts together.

Jack didn’t make any effort to talk, she just sat with her feet propped on the corner of her desk, fiddling with a quarter she had in her hand.

“What was it about this case?” Ellie eventually whispered as she clutched a throw pillow to her chest and stretched out the length of the couch, propping her sneaker clad feet on the arm.

It took a beat or two for Jack to react as she was completely lost in her own thoughts about the very same subject. To say it had been an odd few days was an understatement. The entire case had been both draining and fascinating for the entire team. 

“Not really sure. I think maybe we all really took Ducky’s suggestion to heart and just got too caught up in it,” Jack muttered. “I was Aunt Bertha, by the way,” she said with a little laugh.

“Yeah, I was Annie,” Ellie said, also with a little laugh of her own.

“And let me guess, Nick was playing the role of Art?” Jack teased lightly as she pulled her feet off her desk and moved to sit on the chair across from Ellie.

“At least in my mind he was,” Ellie said as she took a shaky breath. “He rocked the moustache, by the way,” she added as she felt unexpected tears welling up in her eyes. Jack pushed the box of tissues towards Ellie. “The whole story was just so sad. Annie’s father gives in about Art and returns the ring, only for her to die the next day, killed by her brother. I feel ridiculous for being so upset. I didn’t know these people,” Ellie sobbed, going from welling up a little to ugly crying in a matter of 30 seconds. Jack closed the door to her office and took a seat next to Ellie. 

“We all threw Rule #10 out the window with this one,” Jack said quietly as she reached for some tissues herself. “I think even Gibbs,” she added as she leaned over and hugged her friend.

Ellie eventually took a deep, calming breath and sat up. She wiped her eyes one last time as Jack did the same. Ellie answered a text and stood up, running her hand through her hair.

“Feel better?” Jack asked.

“Yeah, Nick texted, he wants to go grab a drink. You want to join us?” Ellie offered.

“No, I’m good, you two go ahead. I’m just going to hang out for a little while, finish up a few things,” Jack said, gesturing vaguely towards her desk.

“And maybe wait to see if anyone wanders by?” Ellie asked with a little grin.

“Something like that,” Jack sighed as she opened her door. They hugged one more time before Ellie went to meet Nick.

“Someone is wandering by,” Ellie said as she turned down the hall.

“Jacqueline,” Ducky’s voice floated down the hallway, causing Jack’s eyes to well up again.

“Pull it together,” she muttered to herself as she ushered Ducky in the office. She stuck her head out in the hall one more time, checking to see if anyone else was coming.

“He said he was going down to the evidence garage,” Ducky replied, answering her wordless inquiry. He opened his arms and gave her a much appreciated hug.

“Evidence garage, a little odd,” Jack said as she motioned for Ducky to take a seat. “Do you want a drink?”

“No my dear, I’m fine. We stopped for coffee on the way over to the museum. Is Eleanor okay? She looked rather upset just now.”

“I think the case rattled all of us a bit, honestly,” Jack answered as she sat down behind her desk, reaching for a lollipop.

“And I will take responsibility for that. I told everyone to immerse themselves in the narrative of the case. And apparently you all did,” Ducky replied with a little grin. “Maybe a bit too much in some cases,” he added with a wink.

“Anyway, Ellie identified with Annie and of course Nick was her “Arturo”. They didn’t wind up together in the end and it broke her heart. Who knows, maybe this will be the push the two of them need. I thought his almost dying would be the push but so far, it hasn’t happened.”

“I hope it does push them a little. They deserve to be happy,” Ducky replied. “We all do,” he added with a wink. Jack just nodded, hoping Ducky wasn’t about to launch into a line of questioning regarding her relationship with Gibbs. Things were almost back to their version of “normal”, she didn’t want to jinx it. To Ducky’s credit and Jack’s relief, he did not push the topic. 

“How was the museum?” Jack asked, deftly changing subjects, knowing Ducky would be more than happy to talk about his experience.

The good doctor took the bait easily and shared the details of his private tour with the excitement of a young child. His descriptions bringing a smile to Jack’s face as she sat and listened, all the while rolling the quarter around in her hand. 

“Well, I think I have taken up enough of your time,” Ducky eventually said, when he noticed his friend wasn’t exactly paying close attention anymore.

“Huh? I’m sorry,” Jack said with a grin as she put the coin back on her desk.

“It’s fine Jacqueline. I’ve rambled enough,” Ducky said with a chuckle as he stood up to leave. Jack came out from behind her desk to walk him to the door. “Good night, my dear,” Ducky said as he kissed her cheek. 

“Good night, Ducky. Thanks for stopping by,” she said sincerely returning the kiss.

Jack shut down her laptop and was starting to pack up her bag when her cell rang. She smiled when she saw Gibbs’ face on the screen.

“Hey, Gibbs,” she said as she sat on the edge of her desk.

“You still around?” he asked.

“Yeah, in my office. Ducky just left. You still in the evidence garage?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?” she asked curiously.

“Honestly, not real sure. You wanna come down?” he asked, his voice quiet and tired sounding.

“Sure, give me a minute and I’ll be down,” Jack answered before ending the call. She grabbed two bottles of water from her little fridge and pulled the door closed behind her.


	2. Chapter 2

Jack took the elevator down to the evidence garage, wondering exactly what she was walking into. She found Gibbs sitting on the floor, leaning against a metal shelf. He had, as usual, a coffee cup on the floor next to him. He looked tired and more than a bit contemplative. Neither of which were surprising to Jack. “Hey,” he said with a smile as he held his hand out to her.

Jack crossed the room with a smile. She grabbed one of the blankets they used to spread the evidence out on from the pile in the corner, dropping down next to him so she didn’t have to sit directly on the dusty concrete floor. She had her limits, even where Gibbs was concerned.

“Thanks,” he whispered as he took the water bottle she held out to him. He opened it and tossed the cap in the direction of a trash can, missing by a good foot or so. 

“Figure out why you’re down here yet?” she asked with a grin as she stretched her legs out in front of her. “In the cold,” she added as she pulled her sleeve over her hand, insulating it against the cold water.

“Not really. Here take this,” he said as he handed her his coat which was sitting next to him. He spread it out over her lap, letting his hand rest on her knee. She gave his hand a squeeze and scooted a little closer, resting her head on his shoulder.

“So, which one were you?” she asked as she fiddled with the water bottle.

“Which one was I what?” he asked, having no idea what in the world she was talking about. 

“When you pictured yourself in the case.”

“I didn’t do that,” he said quickly, lacking the conviction he truly thought he was putting forth.

“Really? You know, you probably wouldn’t be down here amongst all this evidence if that were the case,” Jack pointed out, poking him in the arm a little for emphasis.

“True,” he admitted with a little sigh. “That being said, I’m still not sure why I came down here. Just been sitting here on the floor, thinking I suppose. About what, I’m not really sure,” Gibbs muttered. “And for the record, I was the father, of course. I’m not the Arturo type,” he chuckled as he turned his head a little to the left to glance at Jack.

“No, that’s Nick. And, of course that meant Ellie was Annie,” Jack said with a little laugh. “There was a whole lot of breaking Rule #10 on in this case.”

“Yeah but it’s not a rule anymore, remember, I burned it,” he pointed out with a smirk.

“And it’s a good thing you did.”

“In this case, I suppose. Nobody was hurt by their personal involvement, or at least nobody was physically hurt. Maybe got a little more upset than we all would have been otherwise.”

“Than we ALL would have been?” Jack asked with a laugh. Gibbs just nodded, he knew his wording would not have gotten past Jack. “Yeah, we were all affected by the story. Bishop and I just went through half a box of tissues,” Jack admitted.

“Yeah, you do look a little tear stained, even in the crappy lighting down here,” Gibbs whispered as he ran a finger down her cheek. “Why so upset?”

“I think I can put that into words about as well as you can put into words why you’ve been sitting down here alone in the cold, slightly dark evidence garage.”

“Ah,” Gibbs muttered as he threw his arm around Jack, pulling her close. She snuggled against the warm sweater he had on.

“Sometimes I’d wonder how I would have been,” Gibbs muttered vaguely as he scrubbed a hand over his face. 

Jack sat up and turned a little to face him. “What do you mean?” she asked. She wasn’t sure where the conversation was about to go but she knew Gibbs well enough to know he was probably about to open up a bit.

He put his head back and stared up at a spot on the far wall for a minute, gathering his thoughts. Jack stayed quiet, entwining her fingers with his in what she hoped was a comforting and encouraging gesture. 

“What would I have been like as the father of a 20 something daughter? Would I have been as strict as Carter? Or would I have trusted Kelly to find her own way, to make her own choices? I’d like to think I would have done that,” he whispered. Jack didn’t say anything at first, instead just reaching out to run her fingers through his hair. He leaned into her touch and turned his head to look her in the eye. A small, somewhat forced smile came across his face, one which didn’t quite reach his blue eyes. “Thoughts?”

“I obviously didn’t know you back then but I’m sure you were a wonderful father to Kelly. Would you have been on the strict side when she became a teenager? I’m guessing probably. But I don’t think you’d lock her up in an ivory tower, or a sawdust filled basement,” Jack chuckled.

“Probably not. And Shannon would have been there to balance things out if I got a little overbearing. She had already done the balancing act, but in reverse actually. She was the more strict parent when Kelly was little. I was all about ice cream for dinner and letting her use tools in the basement,” Gibbs said, smiling to himself at the memories of his little girl “helping” him with projects in the basement. Back then it wasn’t about boats, it was about doll houses, swing sets and cradles for Kelly’s dolls. “We had a Saturday tradition. Kelly and I would go to the diner for breakfast while Shannon stayed home. She would do a few chores, but mostly she enjoyed a few hours away from an overly energetic young child and a less than chatty husband.”

“So some things haven’t changed,” Jack teased lightly, hoping the teasing would be taken in the manner in which it was intended. The smirk she got in return let her know it was.

“Nope, never been chatty and most likely never will be. But I’d like to think I’ve gotten a little more talkative lately, thanks to you and a few others,” Gibbs whispered as Jack snuggled against his side once more.

“You have and I’m honored that you’ve been that way with me,” Jack whispered back.

“Thanks,” Gibbs chuckled. “Anyway, sometimes after breakfast we’d usually go into the city. She loved wandering around DC. Loved the museums and running around on the National Mall. She was obsessed with the Metro system. She loved the trains and the steep escalators some of the stations have. But her most favorite thing was the Lincoln Memorial. She called him “Uncle Abe” and every time we went into the city she’d insist on climbing the steps. Didn’t matter it if was below freezing or a sweltering summer day, she climbed all the way up. We’d sit on the steps and look out over the city.”

“Just like we did that day,” Jack said with a smile.

“Yep,” Gibbs said quietly. He started to squirm a little, sitting on the cold hard floor getting to be a bit too much for him.

Jack set aside his wool coat and got to her feet, holding out her hand to Gibbs to help him to his feet. He stood up, taking a minute to get his bearings before trying to walk.

“God I’m getting too old to sit on the floor,” he muttered as he shook his legs out a little, trying to restore the blood flow. 

Jack threw out the empty water bottles and turned some more lights on to look at some of the evidence which was still sitting on one of the tables. She pulled up a stool as Gibbs wandered around a little. The letters were spread out over the table, more or less in chronological order. Jack knew Kasie had scanned all of them, so she wasn’t worried she’d missed any of Annie and Arturo’s story. Kasie had promised to send them all the file, if they wished, and they all did. 


	3. Chapter 3

Gibbs wandered into the far part of the garage and Jack wondered what he was doing. He returned a minute later, two beers dangling from his hand.

“Do we have a secret beer fridge down here?” she teased. “How did I not know about this?”

“Not exactly, evidence fridge, but don’t worry, these were sealed in plastic so protected from God knows what,” Gibbs smirked as he set the bottles down on the table in front of Jack. He pulled up another stool and opened the beers, handing one to her. “To Annie and Arturo,” he said clinking his bottle against hers. She just gave nod and a sad little smile.

Jack found the first letter Annie had written. Bishop had told her all about reading it aloud in Art’s garage, first to the amusement of her teammates but then to their delight as they really began to listen to the memories. Annie and Art’s love story had stood the test of time, despite being nearly half a century old.

With a deep breath, Jack started to read it aloud, at first just for her own ears but by the time she reached the end of the letter, Gibbs was listening intently. He was sitting on the stool next to her, elbows on the table, chin propped up on his hands.

_As that song played, I just knew that we’d be together forever._

_Completely yours, Annie_

With a sigh and more than a tear or two, Jack folded the letter back up and slipped it into the envelope. She smoothed her hand across the Arturo’s fading address before putting the letter back on the top of the pile. 

“Love at first sight, huh?” Gibbs muttered as he took a sip of his beer.

“Yeah, but without the happy ending,” Jack whispered as she wiped at her eyes. “God, Annie was so young. She had her whole life ahead of her,” she added with a shaky breath.

“That she did,” Gibbs whispered as he leaned towards her, throwing his arm around Jack and pressing a kiss to her temple.

“At least we gave some closure to Aunt Bertha,” Jack said quietly as she pushed the stool back and stood up. She paced for a minute with her beer. “Can we clean up and get out of here?” she asked, suddenly feeling the need to get out of the evidence garage and get some fresh air. She stopped in front of the table scanning her eyes over the evidence once again.

“If that’s what you want,” Gibbs answered. He thought maybe she’d want to talk, to process things a bit. But he was agreeable to whatever she wanted to do. “We don’t have to clean this up,” he added as he put his hand on hers as she reached for a stack of letters. 

“No, I want to do it,” she said as she brushed her hair out of her eyes. She felt it was the least she could do, to pack up Art and Annie’s memories and stories with the care they deserved. The look in her eye told Gibbs to just let her decide what to do next.

“Okay Jack, whatever you want to do,” he said quietly as patted her hand.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

While Jack went to grab another empty box, Gibbs picked up her cell phone which was sitting on the table. He clumsily held his thumb against the home button. Months earlier Jack had set it up to detect his thumb print as remembering her password proved to be more difficult that it should have been, especially since it was her birthdate. After realizing he didn’t have his glasses with him, Gibbs slipped on Jack’s reading glasses which he found next to a stack of letters. It took him a minute to remember how to find the music app but he was eventually successful. What he wasn’t so successful at was figuring out how to find a song.

“Need help with that?” Jack teased as she made her way across the room carrying an empty box.

“Of course,” Gibbs snorted as he held the phone up. “How do I find a song?”

“What song?” Jack grinned, pretty sure she knew what he was looking for.

Gibbs just rolled his eyes. “Precious and Few,” he said softly as he looked back down at the phone. Even in the dim light, Jack could see he was blushing, something which rarely happened.

“Well, in general you hit the magnifying glass to search,” Jack replied with a little grin as she leaned over his shoulder and pointed to the little icon. “But in this case, you can just go to Recently Added,” she admitted with a smile. Truth was, she’d listened to the song at least a dozen times in the past few days. It brought back memories of her early childhood. She had a vivid memory hearing it on a juke box but her recollection of where she was at the time was a bit foggy.

Gibbs found the song, hit play and set her glasses aside. He nervously wiped his hands on his jeans as Jack ran a hand through her hair. He held his hand out to her as the first few notes of the song played. “Dance?” he whispered with a little wink. Jack just nodded and took his hand.

In the cold, dimly lit evidence garage they had their first dance. It started out as a dance of nerves, a bit awkward, but understandably so. By the time the second verse started, they’d settled in. Gibbs spun Jack around as she laughed. She spun back into his arms, settling in comfortably for the rest of the song, arms around him, head tucked under his chin.

The music stopped and Gibbs pressed a kiss to the top of her head. Jack stepped back, stood up on her tiptoes and kissed him softly. They both just smiled. Jack pulled him back towards the table, restarting the song as they silently finished packing up the letters and other evidence. There was no need for words, they would have quite possible made things awkward. The peace and quiet was just fine with both of them. Over the past few months they’d perfected the art of being together without speaking, it didn’t mean they weren’t communicating.

After everything was carefully packed away, Jack put the lid on the last box with a little sigh. She sat back down on the stool, putting her elbows on the table and propping her chin in her hands. After tossing out their empty beer bottles, Gibbs moved to stand behind her, hands on her shoulders. She let him pull her back a little so her head rested against his chest. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. 

“You hungry? I think I skipped lunch,” Gibbs said a few minutes later.

Jack tilted her head back to look at him. “How does a grown man forget to eat lunch at least twice a week?” she teased.

“What can I say, I’m special,” Gibbs teased right back. “So, dinner?” he repeated as Jack wiggled out of his embrace and stood up.

Jack thought about it for a second. “Only if it’s ice cream,” she replied with a wicked grin.

Gibbs glanced at his watch. “Ice Cream Jubilee is still open,” he said as he picked up his coat and tossed it over one arm, holding his other hand out to Jack.

They went upstairs so they could pack up their things. Jack went to her office to grab her coat and bag, Gibbs went to the bullpen to grab his backpack. 

Ice Cream Jubilee was the favorite ice cream place of the team, as well as being the closest to the Navy Yard. The night was unseasonable warm so they walked the few blocks, figuring by the time they got into Gibbs truck, exited the Navy Yard and found a parking space it was quicker to just walk. They walked along the river in the moonlight, enjoying the silent company of each other.

Apparently many others had the same idea about ice cream and there was a small line when they entered the shop. That gave them time to decide what they wanted. While Gibbs waited for their order, Jack grabbed a handful of napkins and found a table in the corner. 

“See other people are here for dinner,”” Gibbs smirked as he set the bowls down on the table and snagged the chair with his foot, bringing it closer.

“It’s 7:45, I’m sure this is dessert for most people,” Jack smirked back. Gibbs just nodded in agreement as he picked up his spoon, digging into his dish of Banana Bourbon Caramel ice cream.

Jack sighed at her first satisfying bite of Honey Lemon Lavender. Gibbs just rolled his eyes at her. He firmly believed ice cream shouldn’t be “flower” flavored as he put it. “Want some?” she teased, holding her spoon dangerous close to his mouth. He backed up just enough to avoid her offer. Jack did however, take him up on his offer of a bite of his ice cream.

They finished their “dinner” and headed back to the Navy Yard. 

After making their way through the gate and heading for the parking lot, Jack started hunting through her bag for her car keys. She stopped short and started laughing.

“Something funny Sloane?” Gibbs teased.

“Well, I just remembered my car is in the shop and I took the Metro to work today,” she snorted as she closed her bag.

“Must be old age setting in,” Gibbs teased as he pulled the key to his truck out of the pocket of his backpack. Jack just rolled her eyes at him. “Well, since we’ve now walked in the complete opposite direction of the Metro station, I guess the gentlemanly thing to do would be to drive you home.”

“Perfect,” Jack smiled as she headed around to the passenger’s side of the truck.

The drive to her place was quick, there wasn’t much traffic and the lights were on their side.

“You want to come up?” Jack asked as she unsuccessfully tried to stifle a yawn.

“That yawn was not exactly a great invitation,” Gibbs teased. “Actually, I’m pretty tired too. Think I’ll just head home,” he answered as he pulled up to her building, putting on his flashers as he was in front of a fire hydrant.

“Lunch tomorrow?” Jack asked as she grabbed her bag.

“Sure, out of the building, some place with an actual menu?” he offered.

“Sounds perfect. You get some sleep. Tell Finn good night,” she said, knowing their young friend usually called Gibbs from under the covers before he went to sleep.

“I will. Thanks for the dance,” Gibbs said with a wink as he leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Sleep well.”

Jack patted his hand and slid out of the truck. Gibbs watched until she was safely in the building before easing the truck out into traffic. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ice Cream Jubilee is an actual ice cream shop near the Navy Yard in DC. The Banana Bourbon Caramel is to die for!!
> 
> Thanks for the kudos and comments.


End file.
